disc mower vs. mower conditioner

[SALVAGEGUY]

This question is for all the hay guys. I own 50 acres of grass and alfalfa. This is a very good sward. I just purchased a Kubota
M6800 tractor. 65 pto hp. I would like to bale with square bales.
I have 3 great sons to help. I need pros and cons on the what to mow with and some good sound advice before I purchase mower.
Also rake info. By the way the baler I purchased was JD 336 very good condition probably hasn't had 5000 bales.

 

[Charolais]

I live in an area that is high in humidity in the hay season. Some here use the disc mower and can take up to 6 days to dry under normal conditions. Most years in May we don't have 6 days for hay to lay on the ground without getting wet. But the disc mower can work for you if you have good weather and plenty of waiting time. Again that's in this area.

With a mower conditioner I shoot for 3-4 days. Three being good and four at the most. Later in the season with 95+ deg. I can sometimes cut one day and bale the next.

Everyone I know here that uses a disc mower will also use a tedder. With the conditioner I don't tedder hay. So the conditioner saves me one trip over the field. With todays fuel prices , well you get the picture.

Just a side note. If it doesn't start to rain soon we won't have a hay crop this year. I just turned the cows on 15 acres of hay land this morning. Grass here is heading out very low. We had 6 tenths of rain in Feb. , 3 tenths in March and just under 1.5 inches in April. Everyone here agrees we've never seen a spring this dry in our lifetime. That includes my Dad. He's 85. I have one dry weather pond that is dry. No water in it and no mud either. I walked across it two weeks ago and didn't get any mud on my shoes. So we're in trouble here for grass and hay. Looks like there may be a lot of cow selling soon.

Check out the hay equipment that's being used in your area. See what your neighbors use. That may also help you decide what you need for hay equipment.

 

[SALVAGEGUY]

I already have grass near waist high, needless to say we have had a very wet and warm spring here. There are no hay farmers around here to ask. If its not planted in a row they don't plant it.
When I tell people I'm raising cattle they kind of look at ya all funny!
I am leaning towards a NH 488 mower conditioner. Im not sure I
have enough HP to run a disc mower conditioner, I was told I probably need at least 75 HP . Is this true?

 

[MFMan]

If you are looking for a sickle mower/conditioner that has a small HP requirement, check out this 7' model from MF.

http://www.masseyferguson.com/agco/MF/NA/HayForage/1400SMC.htm

 

[slowzuki]

You could run the smallest shaft drive disc mower conditioners if your ground is flat but something like a 9 ft'er would be a bit much.

You can easily run a 9 or even 12 ft sickle mc. Don't know about a centre pivot model, might be a bit much with all the drive line loses.

5030 used to flog his 42 pto hp L5030 with a 12 ft JD sickle mc. I run a 9 footer on my L5030. The rollers and shear weight of dragging it up hill are what use the power.

 

[ddivinia]

How much do these run $$$ wise?

D.

 

[zjohnson]

Wish I could give you some moisture - we haven't had a dry day in weeks. The hay is past it's prime and the corn don't grow well still in the sacks! /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[plumboy]

I went sickle mower route and decided to go with the disc myself.The sickle mower is sSLOW,and with the disk you can use the hydraulics to follow the cut lines rounding corners along with increased speed.
New mower.

Ddivinia,the 7'3" massey sickle mower/condition runs about $10500.Its a heston.

 

[plumboy]

I went sickle mower route and decided to go with the disc myself.The sickle mower is sSLOW,and with the disk you can use the hydraulics to follow the cut lines rounding corners along with increased speed.
New mower.

Ddivinia,the 7'3" massey sickle mower/condition runs about $10500.Its a heston.